Washing-machine.



PATENTED NOV. 13, 1906.

R. E. LEAVENS. WASHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 10.1905.

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No. 835,959; PATBNTED Nov. 13, 19o6 R. E. LBAVBNS. WASHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 10.1905.

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Y PATENTED NOV. I3, 1906.

R. E. LEAVENS. WASHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 10.1905.

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'ROBERT E. LEAVENS, OF LA PORTE, TEXAS.

WASHING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 13,V 1906.

Application filed May 10,1905. Serial No. 259,796.

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, ROBERT E. LEAvENs, a citizen of the United States, residing at La Porte, in the county of Harris and State of Texas, have invented new and useful Improvements in Washing-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in clothes-washing machines, and particularly to a combined washer and rinser.

The invention has for its objects, first, to provide a machine having compartments for suds and rinsing water and means for heating and maintaining the same at a desired temperature; second, to provide a washing drum or cylinder which may be conveniently swung from one compartment to the other, so that the washed clothes may be subjected to a rinsing operation through the medium of and without removing them from the drum; third, to provide means for holding the drum elevated above the water in either chamber to permit of the ready drainage of the water from the clothes and convenient insertion and withdrawal of the clothes, and, finally, to generally simplify and improve the construction and increase the practical efficiency of machines of this character.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists of the features of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a washing-machine embodying my invention, showing the movable parts in closed position. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the cover of the suds-compartment raised and the drum disposed for operation in the rinsing-compartment, the door of the cover being thrown open and the drum locked fromrotation to permit of the insertion or removal of the clothes. Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal secn tion through the machine with parts disposed as in Fig. 1. Figs. 4 and 5 are opposite end elevations. Fig. 6 is a perspective view looking toward one end of the drum. Fig. 7 is a similar view looking toward the other end of the drum; Fig. 8 is a horizontal section on the plane indicated by the line 8 8 of Fig. 3, and Fig. 9 is a side elevation showing in full and dotted` lines the mode of supporting the drum above the water in the compartments by the pivoted supporting elements.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 1 designates an oblong tank orreceptacle provided at or near its corners with supporting-legs 2 and divided centrally Vby a vertical transverse partition 3 to form a washing-chamber or compartment 4 and a rinsing chamber or compartment 5. The side wal-ls of the tank and the partition Simay be formed of any material suitable for the purpose, Aand ythe tank is provided with a bottom wall 6, which closes the bottoms of and is-common to both compartments 4 and 5.

Arranged below the bottom wall 6 is a furnace or fire-box 7, preferablyformed of sheet metal and conforming in area to the wall 6. This furnace or fire-box is suitably secured to the base of the tank or receptacle and is provided at one end with a fuel-door 8 and at its opposite end with a flue 9 for the outlet of the products of combustion, The door 9 is hinged at one end, as indicated at 10, to one of the side walls of the furnace or ire-boX and is `provided at its opposite end with a catch 11 to engage a suitable keeper on the other side wall of the nre-box to hold 4the door closed. Draft-openings 12 are provided in the door 8 and may be of any suitable number and arrangement. The bottom wall 6 of the tank in practice may be of metal, so that when the lire is made in the furnace 7 the waters in both chambers 4 and 5 will be heated and maintained at the desired temperature during the washing and rinsing operations.

To close the compartment 4 during the washing operation, a lid or cover 13 is provided, which is of segmental form and hinged at one of its side edges, as shown at 14, to the upper end of the outer end wall of the compartment 4 and provided at its opposite` side edge, which is adapted when vthe cover is closed to rest upon the upper edge of the partition 3, with a catch 15 to engage akeeper 16 on said partition to secure the cover in closed position. g

The clothes are placed for washing and rinsing in a rotary drum or cylinder 17, comprising end heads 18 and a body composed of a series of spaced rubbing-slats 19, the ends of the slats being tenoned into the heads 18 and securely braced and held within the mortises of the heads by bands 20, suitably fastened to the heads and slats'. The heads and IOO IIO

a portion of the body of the cylinder are divided to form a movable lid or cover 21, which is hinged at one end, as indicated at 22, to one of the heads 18, so as to be turned endwise toan upright position to admit of the insertion yand removal of the clothes. The other end of the cover carries a keeperplate 23 to coperate with a latch 24 on the adjacent fixed portion of the head 18, said latch 24 being pivoted at one end to said fixed portion of the head, as indicated at 25, and arranged to move Within a guide 26 thereon and bent at its free end to form a locking-lip 27, adapted to engage the edge of the plate 23 to lock the cover in closed position.

Projecting from the fixed portions of the head 18 are stub-shafts or trunnions 28, which are adapted to turn in open bearings 29 and 30, formed in the abutting edges of the side Walls ofthe compartment 4 and ends of the cover 13 when the drum is employed for washing purposes in the compartment 4, or to engage corresponding open bearings 3l, formed in the upper edges of the side walls of the compartment 5 to respectively support the drum Within said compartment 5 when the drum is shifted to said compartment for rinsing purposes, as hereinafter described. The outer end of one of the trunnions 28 is suitably shaped to receive an actuating crank-handle 32, by which the drum may be rotated. Pivoted to one of the end portions of the cover 13 is a supporting-rod 33, which is movable in a guide 34 on the contiguous side wall ofthe compartment 4 and is provided with a hooked free end 36 to engage said guide and limit the backward movement of the cover, as shown in Fig. 2.

yThe drum or cylinder is carried by a U-shaped supporting and shifting frame 37, comprising side bars 38, connected at their outerends by a cross-bar 39, which terminates at one side of the frame in an extended handle 40,l which when the cover 13 is closed projects laterally from one side of the compartment 4 through adjacent recesses in the upper edge of said compartment and contiguous portion of the cover and thence extends rearwardly in convenient position for operation. The inner ends of the side bars 30 are pivotally mounted upon rods 41, passing` through or suitably fixed in the upper edge of the centralpartition 3, the ends of said partition being notched to receive the inner ends of the bars 38 and permit their pivotal connection with said rod, While the side and outer end Walls of the compartment 4 are reu,cessed or rabbeted at their upper edges to drum to revolve thereon, said trunnions thence projecting into the bearing-recesses 29 and 30.

Arranged upon the side walls of the'twoi..

compartments 4 and 5 are swinging supporting elements 43 and 44, each of said elements having a recessed free end 45 to engage the adjacent stub-shaft or trunnion 28 to support the drum in an elevated position above the level ofthe water inthe compartments.

In operation water is placed in the compartments 4 and 5 and aA fire started in the furnace or fire-box 7 to heat the same. After the water has been heated to the desired temperature the cover 13 of the compartment 4 is thrown back, the cover ofthe drum opened, and the clothes inserted, after which the cover of the drum is closed and locked and the cover 13 also closed and secured by means of its fastening. The crank-handle 32 is then operated to rotate the drum, whereby the washing of' the clothes is accomplished in an obvious manner. The drum may then be elevated above the level lof the suds-water in the washing-compartment by swinging the supporting element 43 upward into engagement with the adjacent stub-shaft or trunnion 28, thereby allowing the sudswater to drain from the clothes back into the washingcompartment. After the clothes have been washed they may be conveniently subjected to a rinsing operationv without removing them from the drum by first throwing open the cover 13 and then swinging the drum over into the rinsing-com artment 5, which operation is accomplished y means of the handle 40, which will swing the drumsupporting frame 39 on its pivots 41. When the drum is so swun into compartment 5, its trunnions 28 fit wit the bearing-recesses 31, thus permitting the drum to be turned by means of' its handle to thoroughly rinse the clothes in said compartment. After the clothes have been rinsed the drum may be elevated above the level of the water in the rinsing-compartment and supported in elevated position by swinging the supporting element 44 u l ward into engagement with the adjacent stub-shaft or trunnion 28, thus allowing the water to drain back into said compartment from the clothes before the removal ofthe latter from the drum if a second washing operation is not required. After the rinsing operation the drum may be swung back into the washing-compartment 4 for a subsequent washing operation in a manner readily understood.

The mode of supporting the drum in an elevated position above the level of the water in the washing and rinsing compartments is clearly illustrated in Fig. 9, Jfrom which it will be seen that after each washing or rinsing operation the clothes may be sup orted to allow the surplus water taken up t ereby to drain back into the-compartments. When lOO TIO

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the drum is so supported, the clothes may also be applied and removed in a more convenient manner.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the construction and mode of operation of my invention will be readily understood, and it will be seen that it provides a washing apparatus which is simple of construction, comparatively inexpensive of production, and is provided with means for permitting of the convenient washing and rinsing of the clothes by a practically continuous operation without removing the clothes from the drum and also with means for holding the drum in proper position to permit of the ready drainage of the suds and rinsing water and insertion and removal of the clothes.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is A washing-machine comprising a washing and rinsing compartment divided by a partition-wall, each of the compartments having oppositely-arranged edge bearings, a drum having trunnions projecting from opposite sides which serve to be rotatably mounted in the edge bearings of each compartment, a frame for shifting the drum from the bearings of one compartment to the other consisting of side bars mounted on the trunnions and pivoted to the partition, a cross-bar secured to said side bars and having a handle projecting therefrom, and sup orting-bars pivoted to the sides of each of t e compartments and serving to engage the handle to elevate the drum respectively above each compartment, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

ROBERT E. LEAVENS.

Witnesses:

AMos EwELL, ERAsTUs F. SAYERS. 

